Will Smith Won’t Appear In Sequel To ‘Independence Day’

[Wangman Page]

After spending several years looking to generate a sequel or two to the 1996 Fox smash hit Independence Day, it looks like director Roland Emmerich and co-writer and producer Dean Devlin are going to have to take on those Earth-leveling aliens without Will Smith. I’m told reliably that Smith informed the studio that he won’t be joining in on a sequel that the filmmakers hope to have in theaters for July 4 weekend, 2016. That marks the 20th anniversary of the 1996 original that grossed $811 million worldwide and launched Smith on a trajectory to become the world’s most bankable movie star.

Now, this doesn’t mean that the ID4 sequel can’t happen. In fact, Fox is very keen to see it through and what studio wouldn’t want another installment of such a big movie? When Emmerich and Devlin wrote the first draft before handing it over to The Amazing Spider-Man scribe James Vanderbilt, they hatched two distinctly different versions of the movie. Vanderbilt has been working on two separate scripts. One has Smith as the centerpiece, and the other takes the battle to the aliens without his cocky hero fighter pilot Captain Steven Hiller. I don’t believe that Smith has had the final conversation yet with Emmerich, but that will likely happen shortly. I was told not to set this in stone, because Smith has been back and forth before on whether to make the movie, though I hear he is pretty much decided.

Smith, who next stars with The Wolf Of Wall Street‘s Margot Robbie in the grifter tale Focus for Warner Bros, is also not expected to reprise his role as Jay in the next Men In Black, as Sony Pictures works on a reboot of that franchise. On that one, it has been incredibly difficult for the studio to make any money despite high ticket sales because of the gross paid to all the high priced principals on the film.

So they waited to long to make the sequel and now the film will suck. Not that I think all of Smith's films are great but this is one film that needed him to succeed.

 

[Postman Dave]

Surprised Smith ain't jumping all over these sequels with his "bankable" status starting to wain.

 

[Castiel]

Seems kinda pointless without Will Smith. I could see them making it work with someone else having to step up to save earth this time obviously but it won't feel like a true sequel.

 

[Bad News Booty]

Seems kinda pointless without Will Smith. I could see them making it work with someone else having to step up to save earth this time obviously but it won't feel like a true sequel.

As long as it's got Goldbloom fuck a Will Smith. They probably refused to cast his talentless son so he was all butt hurt and won't do it.

 

[Fuji Vice]

They probably refused to cast his talentless son so he was all butt hurt and won't do it.

Probably his son and his daughter. Regardless, I'm more interested in the movie if Will Smith isn't in it, so I'm good with this news.

 

[Postman Dave]

Speaking of his talentless son, I'm watching After Earth Saturday, I hope to god it's better than people say it is.

 

[Swamps]

Speaking of his talentless son, I'm watching After Earth Saturday, I hope to god it's better than people say it is.

Please do not hold your breath my friend.

No Will Smith in independence Day 2? No sir, I shall not watch it.

 

[Citan]

While I can say I did enjoy ID4 when I was a teenager, looking back at it, it wasn't really a good film by any means, and that one had Will Smith in it.

I can only imagine how abysmal the sequels are gonna be without him on board....

 

[Postman Dave]

Speaking of his talentless son, I'm watching After Earth Saturday, I hope to god it's better than people say it is.

Please do not hold your breath my friend.

Well that was a boring load of turd.

 

[Swinny]

Seems kinda pointless without Will Smith. I could see them making it work with someone else having to step up to save earth this time obviously but it won't feel like a true sequel.

Seemed kinda pointless WITH him, really. At least then it MIGHT have made money though, now this has flop written all over it.

 

[Orobin Thor]

I'm a Will Smith fan. Loved ID4. His boy has some talent, not much. I found Karate Kid to be quite good. After Earth sucked so bad I didn't even finish the movie. It bored the shit out of me. If there is a sequel to ID4, it needs Will Smith. Maybe not in a star role, but definitely as a supporting actor. Same with Goldbloom. Its been nigh 20 years since the first one. They should be high up on the food chain if they keep the time interval from then to now.